KANCHANABURI: A total of 169 job seekers from Myanmar were caught for illegal entry in six locations in three districts of this province on Wednesday and Thursday.
Patrols led by the Surasee Task Force arrested illegal migrants who arrived in groups in six locations.
They included Nong Phla village Moo 2 in tambon Wang Krajae and Bong Tee Lang village Moo 2 in tambon Bong Tee of Sai Yok district; Tha Khanun village Moo 1 in tambon Tha Khanun of Thong Pha Phum district, and Mai Huai Nam Khao village Moo 15, Huai Nam Khao village Moo 2 and Takhian-ngam village Moo 10 in tambon Ban Kao of Muang district.
Some groups were found hidden in vehicles while others were hiding in forested areas waiting for vehicles to pick them up, said authorities.
Four men who guided the 169 illegal migrants - 121 men and 48 women - were also arrested.
Officials conducted temperature checks and their temperatures were all normal.
Under questioning, the migrants said they had travelled from Mawlamyine, Yangon, Bago and Rakhine to get jobs in Samut Sakhon, Rayong, Kanchanaburi and Bangkok.
Some had paid between 15,000 and 30,000 baht each to job brokers while others were to make payments on arriving at their workplaces.
All were handed over to local police for legal proceedings.
Adisorn Kerdmongkol, a representative of a migrant labour development network, recently estimated that 80,000 illegal border crossers, the vast majority of them from Myanmar, were caught in Thailand last year. As many as 100,000 more probably slipped past the authorities and were now employed in major provinces, he added.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had said all parties involved should step up efforts to register workers from neighbouring countries so that they can be employed legally in Thailand, where a labour shortage is threatening the economic recovery.
The Federation of Thai Industries has said that the country faces a shortage of about 800,000 migrant workers needed for the manufacturing, service and tourism sectors.